Rent Board Approves Cambridge Increases

The Cambridge Rent Control Board two weeks ago approved an increase in rent for almost a third of all the city's rent controlled units of housing, despite the criticism of some residents and community associations.

By a 3-2 vote on October 29 the rent control board voted to increase in rent for all "Class D" units, although the specific amount of the increase has not been determined, said Laurie L. Goetz, the board's assistant director.

This initiative is "just a continuation of the '84-'85 general adjustment of rent controlled units," said Goetz. "Class D properties were adjusted only for tax and heat changes, and not for inflation and operating income changes," she said.

Class D properties are those units that have a base year other than the standard '67 base year. They are not presumed to have fair rents because they have no determinable system of measurement, and they have never been individually adjusted, said Goetz.

The Rent Control Board has five members: one single family home owner, two tenant representatives and two landlord representatives. representatives.

The vote will affect approximately 4000 of the 15,000 rent controlled units in Cambridge, said Cambridge Civic Association (CCA) President Jack Martinelli, who opposes the board's methodology.

"There has been a real, deliberate misunderstanding of the city council order asking for an adjustment in the rent of some Class D units," said Martinelli. The rent control board had interpreted the request to mean "across the board" increases for all Class D units, when the request was originally made by small unit landlords who were not receiving enough rent to maintain the units adequately, he said.

The rent control board was suppossed to examine certain units that needed the increase but they have "taken a mandate to make increases for all the Class D units," some of which do not need further rent hikes, said Martinelli.

The increase was inevitable, and is only "a continuation of the '85 general adjustment," said Rent Board Executive Director Margaret Drury.

"The increase was delayed because we did not have a sufficient basis to adjust the properties," said Drury. "But the board has developed a statistically derived model using statistical data to make the adjustments."

The establishment of a methodology for increasing rents took place in public forums for four to five months, said the board's hearing examiner, Buddy Packer. "These properties had not been adjusted since1980, so we had to do something," he said.

Of the properties included in Class D, themonthly rent rates range from $50 to $1000, saidMartinelli. Any monthly rent below approximately$100 is considered to be too low for the landlordto sufficiently maintain the property, and anyrent above approximately $550 is considered fair,he said.

"In some areas, the landlord is actually losingmoney. Those are the units that the adjustmentswere aimed at. But the increases will now affectareas that where the landlords are already makingvery large properties," said Martinelli.

But Packer and board members defended theirmethod: "Across the board increases are generallyfair," said Packer. "If you don't make consistentchanges, then the whole system will be boggeddown. We just don't have enough staff to makeindividual adjustments."

Harvard University, the largest property ownerin Cambridge, feels that an increase is necessary,said Jacqueline O'Neill, associate vice presidentof community affairs. "There has to be a generalrent increase because rents cannot remainstagnant," she said. "Periodic reviews andincreases of rent are needed to maintain some ofthe older buildings in the area.